This Fundraising Project Champions the Work of Asian Women-Identifying Creatives
In honor of AAPI Heritage Month.
New York City-based designer Kae Linh Ngo is set to launch an online fundraising project called Rise and Embrace. In celebration of the final week of AAPI Heritage Month, the project highlights the work of Asian women-identifying creatives, including Ang Chan, Bernadette Pham, Cheryl Chan, Esther Park, Monica Pham, Niki Frias, Sabrina Wingate, Satchi Salubre, Tien Nguyen, Tram Phan, Yuki Barton and Ngo herself.
Ngo shared the concept behind Rise and Embrace in a press release:
“Recognizing that so many of our friends in our circle and beyond are incredibly creative and have such unique backgrounds, we wanted to bring together the talent and amplify the voices of Asian women-identifying creatives to continue the conversations that were sparked earlier this year.”
Bringing together 12 Asian and women-identifying designers, artists, illustrators and entrepreneurs specializing in multiple disciplines, 100 percent of the proceeds from this initiative will be donated equally to the Center for Asian Pacific American Women in the U.S. and the Hua Foundation in Canada. With the goal to also share the unique stories of each artist, Rise and Embrace is a continuation of supporting AAPI communities in North America.
“This year meant a lot of looking inward, and taking a different lens on how I created invisible constraints around my own identity as an Asian woman,” Ngo added. “I needed space to get in the zone and figure out what was going on with me, and the world. It was incredibly healing, and by the looks of it, everyone was also trying their hand at something new as well.” Key contributors who also participated in the launch of the initiative include Lauren Kam, Wendi Ma, Sonia Yau and Amy Truong.
The Rise and Embrace fundraiser launches on May 26 at 8 a.m. EST and will run until May 29 at 11:59 p.m. EST. Direct contributions can go directly to this website. For more information about the cause, head over to the official Rise and Embrace Instagram page.
